December, 1922. 



The Canadian Field-Naturalist 



163 



I occasionally met with it in winter, working away 

 on tree trunks in silence except for the noise of its 

 own chiselling. I never heard it utter a note. 

 The only fall record I have is that of one seen 

 September 22, 1904. One collected at Toronto, 

 October 27, would give rise to the belief that the 

 Woodpecker was working southward. 



22. Sphyrapicus varins. Yellow-bellied 

 Sapsucker. — Fairly common in open deciduous 

 woods in spring, but it becomes scarcer as the 

 season advances. No fall records. 



23. Phloeotomus pileatus. Pileated Wood- 

 pecker. — Rare summer resident. I have only 

 one record of this large Woodpecker though it is 

 distinctly at home here as evidenced on canoe 

 trips in various parts of adjacent country from 

 1907 to 1922, when it has been frequently seen 

 and more often heard. 



24. Melanerpes erythrocephalus. Red-headed 

 Woodpecker. — Found quite frequently in the 

 more open parts of the country. I never saw it in 

 the deep woods with the Hairy and Downy Wood- 

 peckers but always in clearings, where it finds 

 upright stumps of trees, 10 to 30 feet high, for 

 resting and nesting sites. Another common 

 place for it was on the telegraph poles along the 

 railway lines, which of course are "upright stumps" 

 to them as much as those in the other clearings. 

 It is usually silent except for its cherr, which it 

 repeats from an elevated spot. 



25. Colaptes auratus. Flicker. — Rather rare 

 summer resident. Although in a well-wooded 

 country I did not find Flickers very abundant. 

 I fancy they prefer more cultivated regions. 



26. Chordeiles virginianus. Nighthawk. — 

 Abundant summer resident. This species is a 

 common object in the evening sky from May 

 until the end of August, where it spends most of 

 its time in "booming". Occasionally through the 

 day I flushed Nighthawks in the open woods, 

 when they were nearly always silent. Several 

 flights were seen in the late summer or early fall 

 (September), when many passed overhead erratic- 

 ally in silence. 



27. Tyrannus tyrannus. Kingbird. — Com- 

 mon resident from late April to September. 

 Generally seen near town and in the more settled 

 parts. 



28. Myiarchuscrinitus. Crested Flycatcher. 

 — Rather rare summer resident. I found this 

 flycatcher in a clump of tall trees known as "The 

 Park" several times, uttering its usual note. I 

 cannot recall having seen it elsewhere in the 

 neighborhood or in the fall. 



29. Sayornis phoebe. Phoebe. — Tolerably 

 common summer resident. While walking along 

 ^he railroad track, the best road for any distance 



in the neighborhood I have often observed it on 

 the telegraph wires and have thought that it 

 seemed as if it had learned that along the tracks 

 it could find suitable culverts for nesting. Oc- 

 casionally I have found the Phoebe some distance 

 from any bridge or clearing, generally in some low- 

 lying land, where it probably nests in the roots of 

 upturned stumps. 



30. Nuttallomis borealis. Olivb-sided Fly- 

 catcher.— -Tolerably common summer resident. 

 This bird is more often heard than seen. His high 

 clear whistle can readily be heard half a mile 

 away. It is generally to be found on a dead tree- 

 top or similar commanding position, noisily 

 repeating a lusty "qui-qui" or which it frequently 

 continues into the loud call of "qui quee-queer" . 

 Like the Chebec, the Olive-side ceases to sing or 

 call as summer closes and about the end of August 

 disappears from these northern haunts. 



31. Myiochanes virens. Wood Pewee. — Tol- 

 erably common in the taller and more open 

 woods. I never failed to find it in the grove 

 by the lake front commonly known as "The 

 Park". It was generally in full song and evidently 

 nesting for it remained in the same vicinity 

 throughout the entire season. 



32. Empidonax trailli. Traill's Flycatcher. 

 — Common summer resident. This Flycatcher can 

 always be found in the dense low bushes of the 

 muskeg country. I found it abundant any time 

 I walked any distance along the railway tracks. 

 It is heard even more often than seen. Its note 

 can be readily recalled by the words "Right here". 1 

 have never heard any other note nor pretense of 

 flight song such as the Chebec sometimes utters. 

 So characteristic of the flycatcher family is this 

 bird's note that I recognized it as such before I 

 first saw the bird. The scrubby country, thick 

 with low bushes, that it inhabits also assists in its 

 identification. 



33. Empidonax minimus. Least Flycatcher. 

 — Abundant summer resident. The Chebec may 

 be seen at all times in his bushy haunts, constantly 

 calling his snappy "C/ie6ec." On many occasions 

 I have seen him execute a flight song after he had 

 been chebecing for a long while. He springs into 

 the air and utters a "Too-oorle too-oorle" several 

 times, ending in his usual "chebec," which identifies 

 him at once. With the coming of summer the 

 Least Flycatcher becomes silent and by early fall 

 has slipped away from the northern woods. 



34. Otocoris alpestris. HoRNED Lark. — There 

 is very little country about North Bay suitable 

 for the Horned Lark. I saw it once in the rough 

 clearings and twice met it in the large open field 

 called "The Park", near the lake. Probably a 

 pair nested there the season of 1904 



